El LissitzkyPelikan Tinte

Public Domain

El Lissitzky designed this advertisement for Pelikan Ink during an extended four-year stay in Germany. In these years, he introduced a disbelieving public to the radical art of Russian Constructivism and connected with local artists like Kurt Schwitters, a Dadaist based in Hanover. Their friendship was strengthened by a shared commitment to graphic design reform. Hanover-based Pelikan Ink was an ideal client for Schwitters and Lissitzky; its product catered to artists, so the firm wanted its advertisements to embody the newest artistic innovations. Lissitzky’s photogram combines the stylish abstraction and minimal presentation that German audiences liked with text elements to convey the marketing message. Advertisements like this one, and the one by Edmund Kesting shown below, helped bring abstraction into the mainstream.

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